Streamlining Your Election Calendar

In the waning hours of the 114th General Assembly, an election bill that has the potential to drastically change Nashville’s voter turnout is still in play.

From Megan Podsiedlik

This morning, the Tennessee House passed legislation that could shift all local elections to align with state and federal election cycles. If approved by the Senate, the bill will significantly reshape local elections in Davidson County, where council and mayoral races are currently held during off-cycle, odd-numbered years. 

Enactment by 2030 The House adopted an amendment allowing for elections to remain non-partisan. It also gives local governments and municipalities the option to either extend current council and mayoral terms so the next local election lines up with the 2028 election cycle or to abbreviate the next term to align with 2030 elections.

Voter turnout During presidential election years, Nashville typically experiences 50-60 percent turnout. For state midterms and federal elections, there is about 30-40 percent turnout, and for mayoral and council elections, about 20-25 percent turnout. 

“The mayor of Spring Hill was elected with 1,300 votes,” said House Sponsor Scott Cepicky (R-Culleoka) during last week’s House Finance Subcommittee meeting when explaining why he brought forward the bill. “When myself and Senator Hensley run in August or November in those two elections—just on the Maury County side—I'm at about 9,000 votes and the general is pushing almost 14,000 votes.”

During the Senate State and Local Government Committee meeting in March, Senate Sponsor Joey Hensley (R-Hohenwald) explained that, though local governments and municipalities across Tennessee have had the chance to consolidate elections to help with voter turnout, about 60 still maintain separate election schedules to the advantage of local incumbents.

Decreased cost “Very simply, it moves all municipal elections to August or November, therefore saving the cost to our municipalities,” explained Cepicky. According to the fiscal note, moving all elections to the same cycle across the state will save about $100,000 a year.

The Senate Finance, Ways, and Means Committee will hear the bill when it reconvenes 30 minutes after today’s regular Senate session.

BLURBS

🚧 Bridgestone Turns Itself Inside Out The Predators' $750M renovation, self-funded through ticket revenue and arena sales tax, begins this month. The facelift extends the arena four stories out to Lower Broadway, adds 200,000 sq ft of retail, bar, and restaurant space, and caps the whole thing with a 400–600 room hotel on Demonbreun. (Biz Journal)

☕️ Starbucks expands footprint in Nashville This morning, Governor Bill Lee announced Starbucks’ plan to open a new Southeast corporate office in Music City.

“This iconic global company’s $100 million investment—a testament to our strong economy & unmatched workforce—will create 2,000 new jobs for Tennesseans,” posted Governor Lee on X.

The company plans to set up shop in a 250,000-square-foot mixed-use office space in Peabody Union alongside the Cumberland River.

“The Nashville office will be a complement to our global and North America headquarters in Seattle where we will maintain a large presence,” reads this morning’s press release by Starbucks Chief Partner Officer Sara Kelly.

Starbucks plans to open a temporary office in the Gulch and expects to move into the Peabody Union space in 2027.

✹ METRO COUNCIL WATCH

New Council Watch Features We've added additional features to Council Watch. In addition to who's funding your council member, you can now see how they vote and who they vote with most frequently. (Take a Look)

HEADLINES

• 🏟 Sports radio host Dan Patrick claims Nashville will host Super Bowl LXIV. The new Nissan Stadium is scheduled to open in 2027, and Titans owners recently showed off the new stadium plans to NFL leaders. City and state officials are also pushing for the big game. (NewsChannel 5)
• 🛬 FAA investigating extremely close call between 2 Southwest planes in Nashville. The incident unfolded at about 5:30 p.m. Saturday. Southwest Flight 507 was about to land in Nashville amid gusty winds when the pilots "executed a precautionary go-around," Southwest Airlines said. At their closest point, the planes were right on top of one another, with the vertical separation between the two planes at just 500 feet, according to FlightRadar24. (ABC News)
• 🌿 Clarksville organization working to stop the loss of southern grasslands. Grassland habitats across the United States have been on a sharp decline over the past 30 years, with some researchers suggesting a loss of nearly 62% of historic native ecosystems as of 2023. To combat this, a Clarksville, Tennessee organization is spearheading a $10 million project to focus on the conservation of around 2,500 acres of native grassland throughout middle Tennessee. (WPLN)
• 🏎 Final hearing on proposed amendment to ban auto racing at Nashville Fairgrounds. On Monday, Chancellor Pat Moskal heard final arguments in a legal challenge to the proposed Metro Charter amendment. The lawsuit, brought by ex-driver Neil Chaffin, survived a motion to dismiss in March. Much of its argument rests on a technicality about terms used within the amendment’s language. Moskal noted the time sensitivity related to the suit and said she will issue a ruling as soon as possible. (Banner)

DEVELOPMENT

• Circle K market, gas station slated for Rosa L. Parks Boulevard and Jefferson Street (NBJ)
• Berry Hill building offered for $1.69M (Post)

THINGS TO DO

View our calendar for the week here.

📅 Visit our On The Radar list to find upcoming events around Nashville.

🎧 On Spotify: Pamphleteer's Picks, a playlist of our favorite bands in town this week.

👨🏻‍🌾 Check out our Nashville farmer's market guide.

TONIGHT

🎸 Cut Worms w/ Liam Kazar @ The Basement East, 8p, $33.49, Info

🎸 Styx @ Ryman Auditorium, 7p, $94+, Info

🎻 Bluegrass Mass with the Nashville Symphony Chorus @ Schermerhorn Symphony Center, 7p, $36+, Info

🎸 Honky Tonk Tuesday @ Eastside Bowl, 8p, $10, Info‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌
+ two-step lessons @ 7p, The Cowpokes @ 8p

📰 Check out the full newsletter archive here.

Today's newsletter is brought to you by Davis Hunt, Megan Podsiedlik, and Camelia Brennan.